Delegation of Canadian university presidents heads to BrazilLéo CharbonneauUniversity Affairs, April 25, 2012

The largest-ever overseas delegation of Canadian university presidents arrives in Brazil April 25 for a week of meetings with their Brazilian counterparts, industry representatives and government officials. In the next five years, Brazil is expected to become the fifth largest economy in the world. The university sectors in both countries have long recognized each other’s strengths and are keen to forge closer ties, said AUCC. The Brazil mission is being led by Canada’s Governor General, David Johnston. AUCC has created a website devoted to the mission, which includes a blog, the presidents’ itinerary and other resources.*http://www.universityaffairs.ca/aucc-brazil-mission.aspx

2012 Outstanding Service to Librarianship Award Announced by the Canadian Library AssociationApril 20, 2012

The Canadian Library Association / Association canadienne des bibliothèques is pleased to announce that the 2012 CLA Outstanding Service to Librarianship Award is being presented to Ken Roberts of Hamilton Public Library. The CLA Outstanding Service to Librarianship Award is generously sponsored by ProQuest. Ken Roberts has had a remarkable impact on Canadian libraries through his career in public libraries across the country, from Lethbridge, Alberta and Richmond, British Columbia to Whitby and Hamilton in Ontario. As well as being one of Canada’s great leaders in the realm of public libraries, serving, for example, in multiple terms as Chair of the Canadian Urban Libraries Council, Ken has served the profession in major leadership roles including President of the Canadian Library Association and President of the Ontario Library Association.*http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&CONTENTID=12852&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm

Former city librarian honoured for contribution to publishingTracy SherlockVancouver Sun, April 14, 2012

The Stratford Report 2012: Arts and Culture at the Digital Crossroads Stratford Institute for Digital Media

The second edition of The Stratford Report reflects a two-fold ambition: (1) to help Canadians understand what the annual Canada 3.0 conference means by its ambitious goal: Canada – A Digital Nation by 2017, and (2) to assess and report on our progress as a society in achieving this vision. The Stratford Declaration, adopted by the Canada 3.0 Conference in 2009, embodied the commitment of the participants to help Canada succeed in the rapidly changing, highly competitive global economic environment.*http://stratfordinstitute.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/stratford_report_2012.pdf

Becoming a Digital Nation: An Evaluation of Provincial and Territorial eGovernment InitiativesStratford Institute for Digital Media and Brainmaven Research, April 2012

Canada has developed what is, arguably, one of the most complex systems of government. With responsibilities divided across national, provincial, municipal and sometimes, regional governments, accessing needed services or information can be problematic. The first Canada 3.0 Conference in 2009 set an ambitious goal: Canada as a digital nation by 2017. This has been reaffirmed each year since by the 2000 or so leaders from government, universities and the private sector who have been debating and exploring the dimensions of this vision. The Stratford Institute was created to help assess and report on progress.*http://stratfordinstitute.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/eGovernment_final_web.pdf

Reading Re-Imagined: A National Digital HUB to support service delivery to Canadians with print disabilitiesConceptual Model/Business PlanCNIB, March 30, 2012

You’ve signed on to the Boycott, now what? A SPARC Guide for Campus Action

In light of the recent, failed attempt to abridge access to scholarly articles via the Research Works Act (RWA), a growing number of researchers have expressed their frustration with the status quo in scholarly publishing, and are interested in learning about concrete actions that they can take to effect positive change. SPARC has prepared this resource for our members, to help you to engage your faculty and researchers, and talk with them about options for taking such action. *http://www.arl.org/sparc/bm~doc/sparc_boycott_next_steps.pdf

The Future of Taxpayer-Funded Research: Who Will Control Access to the Results?[U.S.] Committee for Economic Development, 2012

In a series of reports since 2004, CED’s Digital Connections Council (DCC) has explored how the development of digital technologies and accompanying changes in communications, computation, and the storage of information have affected commerce and public policies. The DCC has been particularly interested in how manifestations of greater openness—seen in open access to research, open standards, open-source software design, and open innovation—add value to America’s scientific, technological, and commercial activities and can be harnessed to improve domains such as healthcare and higher education. This report builds upon that earlier work and delves deeper into the relationship between the traditional means of providing access to federally-funded scientific research and the benefits that can be derived from providing greater public access to it.*http://www.ced.org/images/content/issues/innovation-technology/DCCReport_Final_2_9-12.pdf

Universities are reliant on information technology (IT) for almost everything they do – teaching, learning, research, administration, communication and planning. IT influences, enables and even transforms these and other university activities. IT is integral to a university’s success. At CANHEIT 2012, over 350 IT professionals from universities and colleges across Canada will come together to discuss these questions and more. As the only national conference for IT professionals in higher education, CANHEIT 2012 provides the opportunity to learn about hot topics, to share ideas, and showcase best practices.*http://www.usask.ca/canheit2012/program/index.php

This conference will examine best practices of academic librarianship, including the role of leadership within the library community and the use of technology as a liberating force for positive social change. Participants will also discuss and develop action plans to protect our profession and the critical public good it provides.*http://www.caut.ca/uploads/Conference_Agenda_2012_v2.pdf

*Excerpted or adapted from the original source. / *Extrait tirée ou adaptée de la source originale.